Method of manufacturing closed link brake hangers



Nov. 7, 1933. SCHAEFER 1,933,638

METHOD OF MANUFACTURING CLOSED LINK BRAKE HANGERS Filed July 6, 1931 2Sheets-sheaf 1 wrmsss rig- 4 5 mvzm-on FM 94 @v 6% 44AM F. SCHAEFER Nov.7, 1933.

METHOD OF MANUFACTURING CLOSED LINK BRAKE HANGERS Filed July 6, 1931 2Sheets-Sheet 2 r lNggTOR 6 890...... v

wrmcss Patented Nov. 7, 1933 UNITED STATES METHOD OF MANUFACTURINGCLOSED a LINK BRAKE HANGERS Frederic Schaef er, Pittsburgh, Pa.Application July 6, 1931.: Serial No. 548,829

5' Claims. (01129-464) This invention relates to the manufacture ofclosed link or loop brake hangers for supporting the brake beams onrailway car trucks, the object being to improve the method ofmanufacturing such brake hangers disclosed in my Patent No. 1,716,933and in my allowed application, Serial No. 445,899 filed April 21, 1930,to the end that the resulting hangers will have greater strength anduniform dimension at theintersections of their horizontal yokes andvertical legs, and that the flow lines will emerge at a point Wherecomplex stressesdo not occur.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, of which Fig.1 is a perspective view of a metal bar ofcylindrical cross section fromwhich a closed link hanger is forged; Fig. 2 is a plan view of a hangerblank forged from the bar of Fig. 1, the blank being shown in full linesas being engaged by expanding tools, and in dotted lines after beingexpanded; Fig. 3 is a plan view of the finished hanger; Fig. 4 is adetail sectional view taken on the line IV-IV of Fig. 3; Fig. 5 is asimilar view taken on the line VV of Fig. 3 and Fig. 6 is a plan View ofa modified form of hanger blank which may be forged from the bar of Fig.1, the blank being shown in full lines as being engaged by expandingtools, and in dotted lines after being expanded.

In the actual manufacture a brake hangers according to the methods of mysaid patent and application, an elongate rolled steel bar is firstforged to form a brakehanger blank'having at l ast two sides parallel,and then two oi'such sides are engaged by an expanding tool and spreadapart until a rectangular link is formed. However, with either of thesemethods a certain amount of distortion of the metal occurs at theintersections of the yoke and legforming portions of the blank when itis expanded to final rectangular form, because these intersections, allof which are at obtuse or acute angles, must produce the right anglecorners-of the finished hanger. Therefore, the distortion and resultingweakening has taken place in the corners of the hanger which are thepoints where a hanger is subjected to maximum stresses, the loads beingthere transmitted from the horizontal yokes to the vertical legs bycombined tension and bending stresses.

In accordance with my invention, a rectangular closed link brake hangerhaving parallel oppositely-disposed yokes and legs is formed by firstforging from a unidirectional rolled steel bar of suitable cross sectionan elongate hanger blank having spaced substantially parallel sidesconnected by looped ends, eachof the sides including twosubstantially'right angle intersections of the yoke-forming andleg-forming portions of the blank, the metal at these intersectionsbeing in the same form as in the finished hanger. Thereafter, each sideof the blank is engaged between its right angle intersections, and theblank spread laterally to change it to the rectangular parallelogramform of the hanger with-. out deforming or distorting the metal at theintersections. :forged that the yoke rather than the leg-formingportions lie entirely in the sides of the blank.

Referring to the drawings, an elongate hanger blank is forged from ametal bar 1, which may be cylindrical as shown in Fig. l, and in whichthe fibers extend longitudinally in the manner produced byunidirectional rolling of the metal. As shown in Fig. 2, the blank hasspacedsubstantially parallel sides connected by returnbend ends whichform a part of'gloop-like legforming portions 2. Each of the sidesincludes a yoke-forming portion 3. intersecting at substantially rightangles 4. with the leg-forming portions, the intersections 4 being ofthe same form as in the finished hanger. The sidesof the blank arespaced-as closely'together as possible in order to minimize the amountof flash between them. However, enough space must be left to permit apair of expanding tools 5 to be inserted between them, and for thispurpose a minimum of approximately one inch has been foundto befeasible. Q

Each yoke-forming portion 3 is preferably larger in cross section thanthe remainder of the blank in order to add strength where'it is mostneeded, and, as shown in'Fig. 4, is elongated so as to be pyriform orpear-shape in cross section for attachment to truck frame brackets andto brake beams in the well-known manner. In the blank of Fig. 2, theseyoke-forming por tions are also preferably curved inwardly slightly inorder to further decrease the amount of flash in the blank, and to avoidaccentuated curves in the blank which cause considerable Preferably, theelongate blank is so a to, I

distortion of the metal when they are straighteration. Therefore, whenthe blank is expanded its corners are not deformed and weakened, but areof uniform strength and dimension. Also, as the fibers in the blankextend longitudinally thereof and follow the form of the sides of theblank as far as the ends where they emerge, transverse fibers in thefinished hanger-do not occur except at the center of each leg where thestrain on the hanger is least.

In the blank described the yoke-forming portions are contained entirelywithin the sides of the blank, but if it be desired, the sides of theblank may comprise the leg-forming portions. This last mentioned form ofblank, as shown in Fig. 6, comprises arcuate sides 16 and arcuate ends17 having right'angle intersections 14. Sides l6 and ends 1'? become theparallel legs 6 and yokes 7, respectively, of the finished hanger, Fig.3, differing in this respect from the preferred form of blank whosesides and ends become the yokes and legs, respectively, of the hanger.How'evenit is to be noted that in the Fig. 6 form of blank theintersections 14 of the arcuate sides andends or yokes are at rightangles, and that these intersections are not deformed when the blank isexpanded by tools 15 into a rectangular parallelogram. The fibers of themetal emerge at the center of each yoke,

but this point, like the center of each leg, is one of minimum strain.The blank may be expanded I stood that, within the scope of the appended50 claims, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specificallyshown and described.

I claim:

l. The method of manufacturing a closed link brake hanger of rectangularform having oppositely disposed yokes and legs, comprising forging froma bar of unidirectional rolled metal an elongate hanger blank havingspaced oppositely disposed sides, return-bend ends, and having as a partof each of said sides substantially right angle intersections of theyoke-forming with the leg-forming portions of the blank, engaging eachside between its right angled intersections and spreading them laterallyto straighten the portions between said intersections comprising theoutwardly curved ends without deforming said corners. V

2. The method of manufacturing a closed link brake hanger of rectangularform having oppositely disposed yokes and legs, comprising forging froma bar of unidirectional rolled metal an elongate hanger blank havingspaced oppositely disposed yoke-forming sides, outwardly extendinglooped leg-forming ends, and having the corner intersections of the yokeand leg-forming portions at substantially right angles, engaging theyokeforming portions of said .sides and spreading them laterally tostraighten said leg-forming ends without deforming said corners.

3. The method of manufacturing a closed link brake hanger comprisingforging from a piece of uni-,directonal rolled steel an elongate hangerblank having arcuate hanger-forming sides and yokes intersecting eachother at substantially the same angle as in the finished hanger, andexpandingthe blank to the form of a. completed hanger without deformingsaid intersections.

4. The method of manufacturing a closed-link brake hanger of rectangularform, having oppositely disposed yokes and legs, comprising forging froma bar of uni-directional rolled metal an elongated hanger blank withsides consisting of symmetrical right-angled intersecting yokeformingand side-forming portions in which the fibres of said uni-directionalbar extend transversely at the extreme'ends of the blank, and engagngsaid sides between its right-"angled intersections and spreading themlaterally to straighten said leg-forming and yoke-forming portionswithout deforming said corners. V

5. The method of manufacturing a brake hanger having a yoke with legsdisposed at right angles thereto, comprising forging a metallic body'toproduce an elongate hanger blank having side portions in relativelyclose'proximity with each other and having an end portion joining theside portions, the intersections of the yoke-forming and the leg-formingportions of the blank being substantially at right angles, andstretching said blank to straighten said leg-forming portions withoutdeforming said right angle intersections.

FREDERIC SCHAEFER.

